When Takiro returned home, something immediately felt wrong.
On the wall of his house, a rusted nail had been hammered deep into the wood. From it hung a piece of paper that swayed slightly in the wind.
Takiro stepped closer.
At first he thought it was glue dripping from the paper… some sticky substance used to hold it in place.
But when he touched it, his fingers froze.
It wasn’t glue.
It was blood.
Warm.
Fresh.
For a moment, Takiro’s entire body trembled.
Who did this…?
When I arrived earlier, this wasn’t here…
Before he could think further—
A sound.
Behind him.
Takiro spun around.
A mass of black smoke suddenly lunged toward him like a living shadow.
He barely dodged.
The force of the impact threw him back nearly ten feet. He rolled across the ground before stopping.
When he looked up, he saw a dark figure emerging from the swirling smoke.
A familiar presence.
Dark Soul.
The figure chuckled coldly.
“I didn’t even need to search for you,” he said.
“Finding you was ridiculously easy.”
Takiro’s eyes narrowed.
Dark Soul continued, mocking him.
“Your Hero Association… it’s laughable.”
“All it takes is a handful of money. Toss it around… and your heroes start spilling information like frightened children.”
Takiro’s heart skipped a beat.
“Someone from your headquarters told me everything about you.”
The words struck him harder than any blade.
“Once my boss learned you were responsible for what happened,” Dark Soul continued, “his blood started boiling.”
“I wanted to kill you immediately.”
“But he had a different plan.”
Dark Soul’s grin widened.
“One by one… we planned to kill your heroes.”
“Slowly.”
“So that fear would grow inside you.”
“But now…” he said calmly.
“You’re getting stronger.”
“And that plan doesn’t interest us anymore.”
Takiro’s mind was racing.
Who leaked my information…?
How did they know…?
But the moment he realized something—
This man was a servant of the true enemy.
Takiro’s hand moved instantly.
He drew the Thunder Sword from its sheath in a flash.
The moment the blade left its scabbard, a violent gust of compressed air shot forward.
An invisible slash tore through the air straight toward Dark Soul.
Dark Soul didn’t even move.
With a single motion of his Dark Blade, he blocked it.
Takiro’s eyes widened.
He saw it…?
No… that’s impossible.
The attack came the instant the blade left the sheath.
How did he react so easily?
Takiro’s heart began to pound.
This opponent…
He’s not someone I can defeat recklessly.
Without hesitation, Takiro activated his technique.
“Thousand Slashes.”
His sword began spinning at terrifying speed.
To an outside observer, it looked as though Takiro stood inside an invisible sphere of spinning blades.
But Dark Soul only laughed.
Every slash.
Every gust of wind.
He dodged them all effortlessly.
“Are you serious?” Dark Soul mocked.
“I thought you were strong.”
“This won’t even work on my subordinates.”
“You should take this fight seriously.”
He raised his blade slowly.
“Because this…”
“…will be your last battle.”
Rage ignited inside Takiro.
He compressed the air around his sword until it trembled violently.
Then he swung.
The compressed air fired forward like a bullet.
For the first time—
Dark Soul was hit.
A shallow cut opened across his right hand.
Blood dripped.
Dark Soul stared at the wound.
Then he began to laugh.
“So you can touch me.”
“But that doesn’t mean you’re worthy.”
The moment he finished speaking—
He vanished.
In a blink, he appeared in front of Takiro.
Their blades collided.
CLANG.
The impact sent violent vibrations through both of their arms.
For a moment, it felt as if their hands might lose grip of their swords entirely.
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They stared into each other’s eyes.
Both burning with fury.
Then Dark Soul slammed his blade into the ground.
Black energy erupted.
From the darkness—
Three… four…
Dark Demons emerged.
Takiro’s anger exploded.
He compressed the air within his blade and unleashed a massive four-directional slash.
The shockwave slammed into the demons.
They were pushed back nearly ten feet.
But they didn’t die.
They stood again.
Dark Soul laughed louder.
Then he said something that froze Takiro’s heart.
“I saw your child.”
The words shattered Takiro’s calm.
Something inside him snapped.
Fear.
Rage.
Protective instinct.
Everything exploded at once.
His mind stopped thinking.
All that remained was one burning thought.
Kill him.
Takiro unleashed every ounce of power he had.
One devastating slash.
The demons were torn apart instantly.
Even Dark Soul was blasted back ten feet.
But when Takiro looked at his weapon—
His heart sank.
The Thunder Sword had cracked.
Only then did Takiro realize the truth.
If this sword hadn’t absorbed most of that force…
The houses… the people around here…
They would all be dead.
He had lost control.
And now his weapon was broken.
Before he could react—
Dark Soul attacked.
His blade pierced Takiro’s left shoulder.
Pain exploded through his body.
Then suddenly—
Nothing.
His arm went numb.
Takiro realized the truth.
This is the power of the Dark Blade…
He could barely move his left arm.
Fear crept into his chest.
Then suddenly—
A memory flashed in his mind.
Something written in his grandfather’s room.
"A true warrior does not depend on his weapon."
Takiro tightened his grip on the broken blade.
Even with the shattered sword, he continued compressing air and striking.
But the broken edge made his attacks weaker.
Dark Soul attacked again.
This time—
The remaining piece of the Thunder Sword shattered completely.
His Dark Blade pierced Takiro’s leg.
Takiro collapsed in pain.
Their battle energy had become so intense that far away—
At Hero Headquarters, the radar alarms began screaming.
“Massive energy spike detected.”
The signal reached the Number Three Hero — God of Flame.
Orders were given immediately.
“Proceed to the location.”
The hero soared through the sky, flames propelling him forward.
From high above, he saw the battlefield.
Takiro…
And another terrifying opponent.
Without hesitation, he gathered his flames.
A blazing sphere of fire formed in his hand.
Like a miniature sun.
He hurled it downward.
The fireball struck Dark Soul directly.
Flames erupted.
Dark Soul was blasted back, rolling across the ground as his arm burned.
He looked up.
And saw the hero descending from the sky.
Dark Soul clicked his tongue.
He looked back at Takiro.
“You should have died today,” he said coldly.
“Don’t misunderstand.”
“You didn’t defeat me.”
“I’m leaving because he arrived.”
He glanced toward the flame hero.
“If I wanted… I could fight him too.”
“But I have other orders now.”
Dark Soul stepped backward into the shadows.
“And next time…”
“…you won’t be this lucky.”
His body dissolved into black smoke.
And he vanished.
Moments later—
Back at Hero Headquarters—
Another alarm sounded.
Even louder.
A terrifying message appeared on the screen.
HEADQUARTERS UNDER ATTACK.